Bees legend Kevin O’Connor admitted promotion to the Championship made pain of relegation worthwhile, writes Stuart Amos.
 

The 32-year-old, who will take up a player-coach role at Griffin Park next season, can break the 500 league appearance barrier for the club should he feature in Saturday’s trip to Colchester United and the visit of Stevenage  on May 3.
 

O’Connor started his career with the Bees in 2000 – taking in relegation to and promotion from League Two, with the odd play-off defeat along the way – and admitted elevation to the second tier was the icing on the cake
 

“You experience relegation and how low you felt and then it comes to Friday and it makes it all worthwhile,” he said.
 

“It is a great feeling and memories that will live with me forever. It is a great time to be at a club going places.”
 

He added: “I’ll sit down with the manager to discuss my role. There are great coaches to learn from here.
 

“It is going to be really interesting and exciting.”